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ELECTION 2020: Constitutional amendments, taxes, property sales on area ballots

ALPENA — Voters in Northeast Michigan will decide a number of tax and other ballot proposals, in addition to two statewide measures, on Nov. 3.

Here’s a roundup of what Northeast Michiganders can expect to see at the polls:

STATEWIDE PROPOSAL 1

In about three decades, according to the Citizens Research Council of Michigan, $800 million in oil and gas bonuses, rentals, and royalties from operations on state lands will have flowed into the Michigan State Parks Endowment Fund. Under current state law, any additional funds collected go into the state’s General Fund, to be spent as lawmakers see fit.

If voters OK Proposal 1, the state constitution would require any money beyond that $800 million to flow instead into the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund, and a current $500 million cap on the trust fund — which was reached in 2011 — would be eliminated. Lawmakers would be allowed to allocate half of the oil and natural gas revenue for trust fund projects and the rest would be deposited into the trust fund to earn interest.

PROPOSAL 2

A second statewide ballot proposal would enshrine in the Michigan Constitution a requirement that law enforcement obtain a search warrant to access a person’s electronic data or electronic communications.

The proposal would essentially guarantee Michiganders’ digital property, such as data stored on their smartphones, is protected from warrantless searches, same as their physical property, such as their home.

PRESQUE ISLE COUNTY

COUNTYWIDE 911 SURCHARGE

Presque Isle County voters will be asked to OK a $3 surcharge on every phone line in the county — landlines and cell phones — to fund the county’s 911 system.

The county currently charges $2 per line.

The surcharge would last five years, 2022 to 2027.

POSEN SCHOOLS SINKING

FUND RENEWAL

Posen Consolidated School District is asking voters to renew a 0.5-mill tax — about $25 a year for the owner of a $100,000 house — for its sinking fund, which is used to construct, repair, or improve school facilities or buy new technology. The tax would be charged for 10 years, from 2021 to 2030, and would raise about $58,481 in its first year.

ROGERS CITY HISTORICAL TAX

Rogers City is asking voters to approve a 0.5-mill tax hike — about $25 a year for the owner of a $100,000 house — to raise money for the Presque Isle County Historical Museum and Great Lakes Lore. The tax would be charged for five years, 2021 to 2025, and would raise about $36,391 in its first year, with $848 of that going to the Rogers City Downtown Development Authority.

ROGERS CITY PROPERTY SALES

Rogers City is also asking voters permission to sell four pieces of city-owned property:

* on Cedar Street, east of Balsam Street and west of Evergreen Street,

* at the southeast intersection of First and Michigan streets,

* along Riverview Street and the Trout River, east of Marquette Street and west of Linden Street,

* and on West Third Street, north of the intersection of Third and Oak streets.

The city charter requires voter approval for property sales.

MONTMORENCY COUNTY

COUNTYWIDE INVASIVE SPECIES TAX

Montmorency County is asking voters to approve a 1-mill, one-year tax that would cost the owner of a $100,000 house about $50 a year and raise funds for an invasive species suppression program countywide. The tax would raise about $505,250 in its first year.

RUST TOWNSHIP ROADS TAX

Rust Township is asking voters to approve a 1-mill, four-year tax that would cost the owner of a $100,000 house about $50 a year and raise money for road construction and maintenance. The tax would be charged this year through 2023 and would raise $32,705 its first year.

RUST TOWNSHIP AMBULANCE TAX RENEWAL

Rust Township is asking voters to renew its 1.5-mill tax for ambulance services. The tax would cost the owner of a $100,000 house about $75 a year from 2021 through 2024 and would raise $49,057 in its first year.

ALCONA COUNTY

COUNTYWIDE SENIORS TAX

Alcona County is asking voters to approve a 0.825-mill tax — about $41.25 a year for the owner of a $100,000 house — to help fund the Alcona County Commission on Aging. The tax would be levied for six years, 2020 to 2025, and would raise $640,748 in its first year.

COUNTYWIDE 911 SURCHARGE RENEWAL

Alcona County is asking voters to renew a $3 surcharge on all phone lines in the county — cell phones and land lines — for 911 operations. Phone lines would be charged from July 2021 until June 2027.

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